Anatoly Aleksandrovich Tokov (russian: Анатолий Александрович Токов ; born 17 February 1990) is a

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

currently fighting in the

middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have be ...

division of

Bellator MMA Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) is an American mixed martial arts promotion (entertainment), promotion founded in 2008 and based in Santa Monica, California, owned and operated as a subsidiary of television and media cong ...

. Tokov has previously fought in promotions such as:

M-1 Global M-1 Global (Mixfight-1) or MMA-1 (Mixed martial arts-1) is a mixed martial arts promotion based in St. Petersburg, Russia which organizes between 10 and 20 competitions per year. It hosted its first major show (rather than co-promoting with othe ...

Fight Nights Global AMC Fight Nights (or Fight Nights Global before 2021) is a Russian mixed martial arts organization that previously hosted K-1 and other martial arts events. It is one of the largest promotion companies in the world and features some of the top-ra ...

Rizin Fighting Federation Rizin Fighting Federation (Rizin FF or Rizin) is a Japanese mixed martial arts organization created in 2015 by the former Pride Fighting Championships and Dream Stage Entertainment president Nobuyuki Sakakibara. Rizin was founded to be the spir ...

and

Absolute Championship Berkut Absolute Championship Akhmat (ACA), formerly known as Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB), is a Russian mixed martial arts, kickboxing and Brazilian jiu-jitsu organization and one of the leading promotions in Europe. To date, most events have been ...

where Tokov became the one-time Middleweight champion. As of April 4, 2023, he is #3 in the Bellator Middleweight Rankings.

Background

Anatoly Tokov was born on February 17, 1990, in the city of Tobolsk, in the Tyumen region to a

father and Kabardian mother. From adolescence, the boy liked to watch action films with the participation of Jean Claude Van Damme, Jackie Chan and Chuck Norris, which determined his hobbies in the future. Tokov took the first steps at age 15, enrolling in the hand-to-hand combat section under the guidance of trainer Andrei Mikhailovich Sabarov. Just three years after the start of training, he achieved an outstanding result - a victory at the national championship in hand-to-hand combat. A year later, he decided to move to the rapidly gaining popularity of mixed martial arts and decided to pursue a career in mixed martial arts following the birth of his first daughter at the age of 18. Tokov initially wanted to train and pursue a career in boxing; however, in his city of Tobolsk, only hand-to-hand combat was available. Tokov also would have pursued a career in judo, although this dream was short lived for it was too difficult to commit with because of the distance required to travel to train. He achieved his first success at the adult level in the 2008 season, when he became the champion of Russia in the ARB, won several tournaments of Russian and international significance, and fulfilled the standard of a master of sports. He also competed several times in pankration and combat sambo tournaments.

Professional career

In 2009, Tokov joined the fighting club Red Devil Fighting Team after being invited, along with Sidelnikov, the Nemkov brothers and Moldavsky, to become a part of

Fedor Emelianenko Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko ( rus, Фёдор Влади́мирович Емелья́ненко, r=Fyodor Vladimirovich Yemelyanenko, p=ˈfʲɵdər vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪtɕ jɪmʲɪˈlʲjænʲɪnkə, IPA; born ...

's fight team to help as preparation for Emelianenko's comeback into professional mixed martial arts. He made his professional debut not long afterwards at the qualifying tournament of the M-1 Global organization in St. Petersburg, defeating his opponent Anatoly Vintovkin by technical knockout with Nemkov at the 2nd minute of the 2nd round finishing the fight with powerful knee blows to the body. Over the next two years, he had six victorious fights, including winning the

M-1 Challenge M-1 Challenge is a competitions organized by M-1 Global with a series of events held in different places around the world where MMA fighters compete against each other. The events are broadcast in over 100 countries. Fighters in over 30 countries ...

tournament in Astrakhan. He suffered the first defeat in his career in December 2011 by knockout from

Magomed Magomedkerimov Magomed Magomedkerimov ( russian: Магомедкеримов_Магомед_Малачевич, Магомедкеримов Магомед Малачевич (born 01 October 1990) – is a Russian professional mixed martial artist. He curren ...

at the Russian Championship under the S-70 League. Already at the start of the fight, Magomed transferred Anatoly to a defensive position, lying on his back and delivered a knockout blow to the jaw. In 2012, he participated in the M-1 Fighter reality show, broadcast on the Fighter TV channel, and won all three grand prix fights there. Tokov continued to fight in various Russian promotions between 2012 and 2015, winning 15 fights in a row, creating an impressive MMA record of 21-1 in particular, he defeated experienced fighters such as Albert Duraev, Magomed Ismailov, and Jordan Smith. For 3 years, Anatoly took part in a large number of tournaments, including M-1, DIA and S-70 League, having established himself as one of the best middleweights in Russian MMA. In 2015, he visited the

tournament in Japan with

, and knocked American fighter A.J. Matthews in the first round. Anatoly had to fight with the Chechen fighter Arbi Aguev in the 2015 ACB Lightweight Grand Prix Finals for inaugural ACB Middleweight Championship . In the first 3 rounds, the advantage passed from one athlete to another - both fighters showed beautiful combinations in striking technique, however, Tokov was better at fighting on the ground. At the end of the 3rd round, Aguev makes an attempt to throw the opponent over the thigh, but he himself finds himself below and takes several powerful blows to the head - a gong saves the Chechen athlete from a possible knockout. In round 4, Arby looks more tired and begins to miss more and more direct single blows. At the 4th minute of the round, Anatoly takes the opponent to the ground and carries out a series of finishing blows, after which the referee stops the fight, and Tokov goes to get ready to receive the championship belt. After leaving ACB due to a contract dispute, He also had one fight in the Fight Nights promotion, where he defeated the representative of Serbia, Vladimir Filipovich, by unanimous decision. Six months later, Tokov participates in the M-1 Challenge 73 tournament, where he suffers his 2nd defeat in MMA.

Ramazan Emeev Ramazan Dadaevich Emeev (russian: Рамазан Дадаевич Эмеев; born May 20, 1987 in Dagestan) is a Russian mixed martial artist. He is Combat Sambo World Champion who currently fights in the Welterweight division. He is a former M ...

managed to win the close bout via majority decision.

Bellator MMA

In 2017, he signed a contract with the major American organization

and made his debut on the North American continent in February, defeating Francisco France at Bellator 172 by technical knockout. The second match in the promotion at Bellator 200, Anatoly already in the first minute of the first round grabbed Vladimir Filipovich's neck and choked him out with a guillotine. Tokov was expected to face

John Salter John Salter (born March 21, 1985) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Middleweight division of Bellator. A professional competitor since 2007, he has also competed for the UFC and Strikeforce, King of the Cage, and the ...

at Bellator 188 on November 16, 2017. However, Tokov pulled out of the bout due to an ACL injury and was replaced by Jason Radcliffe. In October 2018, he met in the Bellator cage with the titled compatriot

Alexander Shlemenko Alexander Pavlovich Shlemenko (russian: Александр Павлович Шлеменко, born 20 May 1984) is a Russian mixed martial artist currently fighting in the Middleweight (MMA), Middleweight division. He is most notable for fighti ...

at Bellator 208. The fight turned out to be equal and protracted - in the 15 minutes allotted by the regulations for the duel, none of the fighters could finish the confrontation ahead of schedule. After the end of the 3rd round, Anatoly was recognized as the best by the unanimous decision of the judges. After successful fights in Bellator, Tokov signed a new, more profitable contract with the promotion for another 3 fights. On March 22, 2019, he fought his fourth fight in Bellator at Bellator 218 against

Gerald Harris Gerald Harris (born November 19, 1979) is an American retired mixed martial artist and current high school science teacher, who most recently fought in Bellator. He was a cast member of Spike TV's ''The Ultimate Fighter 7'' and has also compet ...

. In the first round, Tokov was on the verge of defeat, having been knocked down, but managed to recover and return to the fight, and by the second round he was able to finish the bout via guillotine and win the fight. Tokov's last fight in Bellator in 2019 was against Hracho Darpinyan at Bellator 229, in which he finished the fight with a TKO stoppage with elbows from crucifix. After a long layoff, Tokov returned on October 23, 2021, at

Bellator 269 ''Bellator 269: Fedor vs. Johnson'' (also known as ''Bellator Moscow'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on October 23, 2021 at VTB Arena in Moscow, Russia. Background On the second last bout of his cont ...

against Sharaf Davlatmurodov, winning the bout via split decision. After the win, Tokov signed another long term contract with the promotion. In his only bout of 2022, Tokov faced Muhammad Abdullah on June 24, 2022, at

Bellator 282 ''Bellator 282: Mousasi vs. Eblen'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on June 24, 2022 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, United States. Background Gegard Mousasi defended his Middleweight t ...

, finishing the bout in the first round via ground and pound TKO stoppage. Tokov faced reigning champ

Johnny Eblen Johnny Eblen (born December 13, 1991) is an American professional mixed martial artist currently signed to Bellator MMA, where he is the current Bellator Middleweight Champion. As of December 13, 2022, he is #5 in the Bellator men's pound-for-po ...

for the

Bellator Middleweight Championship Bellator MMA (formerly known as "Bellator Fighting Championships") is an American mixed martial arts promotion, and the following is a history of its champions in each weight class. At the time of its inception in 2008, CEO Bjorn Rebney founded ...

on February 4, 2023, at

Bellator 290 ''Bellator 290: Bader vs. Fedor 2'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on February 4, 2023, at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California, United States. The card aired live on CBS and Paramount Plus, the first ti ...

. He lost the bout via unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

Absolute Championship Akhmat Absolute Championship Akhmat (ACA), formerly known as Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB), is a Russian mixed martial arts, kickboxing and Brazilian jiu-jitsu organization and one of the leading promotions in Europe. To date, most events have been ...

** ACA Middleweight Championship (One time) ** 2015 ACB Middleweight Grand Prix

Personal life

Anatoly married at the age of 19 to Maria, who are still together to this day and raise 2 daughters, Liza and Snezhana. Despite the fact that the athlete spends a lot of time at training camps in Stary Oskol and other cities of Russia, he connects his future exclusively with Tobolsk. He has a younger brother, Vladimir Tokov, who is also a mixed martial artist. Has a higher education, graduating from the Tobolsk Pedagogical Institute of Tyumen University.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 31–3 ,

, Decision (unanimous) ,

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Inglewood, California Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...

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Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is an area in the New England town, town of Montville, Connecticut, Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is a Administrative divisions of Connecticut#Village, neighborhood, section of town, village in southeastern Montville, at the ...

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Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 29–2 , Hracho Darpinyan , TKO (elbows) , Bellator 229 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:38 ,

Temecula, California Temecula (; es, Temécula, ; Luiseño: ''Temeekunga'') is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States. The city had a population of 110,003 as of the 2020 census and was incorporated on December 1, 1989. The city is a t ...

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, Submission (guillotine choke) , Bellator 218 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:37 ,

Thackerville, Oklahoma Thackerville is a town in Love County, Oklahoma. It is located in South Central Oklahoma. The population was 445 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Ardmore, Oklahoma Micropolitan Statistical Area. Geography Thackerville is located at (33. ...

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Uniondale, New York Uniondale is a census-designated place (CDP), as well as a suburb in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, New York (state), New York, on Long Island, in the Town of Hempstead, New York, Town of Hempstead. The population was 32,473 at the 2020 ...

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London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England , , - , Win , align=center, 25–2 , Francisco France , TKO (punches) , Bellator 172 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:24 ,

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

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, Decision (majority) , M-1 Challenge 73 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Nazran , ''Näsare'') is the largest city in the Republic of Ingushetia, Russia. It served as the republic's capital in 1991–2000, until it was replaced with Magas, which was specially built for this purpose. It is the most populous city in the republic: ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 24–1 , Vladimir Filipovic , Decision (unanimous) , Fight Nights Global 50 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 23–1 , Arbi Aguev , TKO (punches) , ACB 38 , , align=center, 4 , align=center, 4:19 ,

Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East Eu ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 22–1 , A.J. Matthews , KO (punch) , Rizin World Grand Prix 2015: Part 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:55 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 21–1 , Adam Zajac , TKO (punches) , ACB 19 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:00 ,

Kaliningrad Kaliningrad ( ; rus, Калининград, p=kəlʲɪnʲɪnˈɡrat, links=y), until 1946 known as Königsberg (; rus, Кёнигсберг, Kyonigsberg, ˈkʲɵnʲɪɡzbɛrk; rus, Короле́вец, Korolevets), is the largest city and ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 20–1 , Sergiu Breb , KO (punch) , Steel Battle 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:07 ,

Stary Oskol Stary Oskol ( rus, Старый Оскол, p=ˈstarɨj ɐˈskol) is a city in Belgorod Oblast, Russia, located south of Moscow. Population: It is called Stary Oskol (Old Oskol) to distinguish it from Novy Oskol (New Oskol) 60 km south. Bo ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 19–1 , Maxim Shvets , Submission (guillotine choke) , ACB 15 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:31 ,

Nalchik Nalchik (russian: Нальчик, p=ˈnalʲtɕɪk; Kabardian: //; krc, Нальчик //) is the capital city of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, Russia, situated at an altitude of in the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains; about northwe ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 18–1 , Enoc Solves Torres , TKO (punches) , M-1 Challenge 54 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 0:53 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 17–1 , Jordan Smith , Decision (unanimous) , Plotforma S-70 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Sochi Sochi ( rus, Со́чи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg) is the largest resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi River, along the Black Sea in Southern Russia, with a population of 466,078 residents, up to 600,000 residents in ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 16-1 , Vadim Feger , KO (punch) , SOMMAF: Steel Battle 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:12 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 15–1 , Albert Duraev , KO (punches) , M-1 Challenge 46 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:21 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 14–1 , Reinaldo da Silva , Decision (unanimous) , TFN: Western Siberian Cup , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Tyumen Tyumen ( ; rus, Тюмень, p=tʲʉˈmʲenʲ, a=Ru-Tyumen.ogg) is the administrative center and largest city of Tyumen Oblast, Russia. It is situated just east of the Ural Mountains, along the Tura River. Fueled by the Russian oil and gas indu ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 13–1 , Islam Yashaev , Submission (guillotine choke) , Voronezh MMA Federation: Fight Riot 2 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:14 ,

Voronezh Voronezh ( rus, links=no, Воро́неж, p=vɐˈronʲɪʂ}) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 12–1 , Adam Polgar , TKO (retirement) , ANMMA: Liberation , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 2:00 ,

Belgorod Belgorod ( rus, Белгород, p=ˈbʲeɫɡərət) is a city and the administrative center of Belgorod Oblast, Russia, located on the Seversky Donets River north of the border with Ukraine. Population: Demographics The population of Be ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 11–1 , Magomed Ismailov , Submission (kimura) , M-1 Challenge 39 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:48 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 10–1 , Yuri Shurov , Decision (unanimous) , M-1 Challenge: Grand Finale , , align=center, 4 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 , Rustam Gadzhiev , Submission (choke) , M-1 Fighter 2012 Semifinals , , align=center, 3 , align=center, N/A ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 , Pavel Pokatilov , Decision , M-1 Fighter 2012 Quarterfinals , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:00 ,

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, KO (punch) , League S-70: First Round , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:07 ,

Volgograd Volgograd ( rus, Волгогра́д, a=ru-Volgograd.ogg, p=vəɫɡɐˈɡrat), geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn (russian: Цари́цын, Tsarítsyn, label=none; ) (1589–1925), and Stalingrad (russian: Сталингра́д, Stal ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Artur Korchemny , KO (punch) , TFN: Siberia vs Urals , , align=center, 1 , align=center, N/A ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Jan Zdansky , TKO (punches) , M-1 Challenge 28 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:20 ,

Astrakhan Astrakhan ( rus, Астрахань, p=ˈastrəxənʲ) is the largest city and administrative centre of Astrakhan Oblast in Southern Russia. The city lies on two banks of the Volga, in the upper part of the Volga Delta, on eleven islands of the ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Arsen Magomedov , TKO (punches) , Corona Cup 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:14 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Zurab Kurabanov , KO (punches) , Pankration Cup Of Call 2011 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:44 ,

Omsk Omsk (; rus, Омск, p=omsk) is the administrative center and largest city of Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is situated in southwestern Siberia, and has a population of over 1.1 million. Omsk is the third largest city in Siberia after Novosibirsk ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Rustam Abdurapov , Submission (armbar) , L-1: Marshal Govorov Memorial 2010 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:40 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Alexey Katukov , KO (punch) , Russian Cities Cup 2010 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A ,

Lipetsk Lipetsk ( rus, links=no, Липецк, p=ˈlʲipʲɪtsk), also romanized as Lipeck, is a city and the administrative center of Lipetsk Oblast, Russia, located on the banks of the Voronezh River in the Don basin, southeast of Moscow. Populatio ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Anatoly Vintovkin , TKO (punches) , M-1 Challenge: 2009 Selections 9 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 0:59 ,

, Russia ,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tokov, Anatoly 1990 births Living people Russian male mixed martial artists Middleweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing ARB Mixed martial artists utilizing sambo Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing pankration Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling Bellator male fighters Russian sambo practitioners